Generic mechanisms for coordinating operations and sharing financial benefits in collaborative logistics

Collaborative logistics is increasingly emerging as a new opportunity for cost reduction through internal and cross chains coordination. This paper presents different coordination mechanisms to support collaborative logistics. These mechanisms are differentiated by their planning function, their sharing approach and the information, decision and financial flows. Often, the logistics planning is run first, and secondly, the sharing is set on the basis of the plan. However, recently, new approaches have been proposed where both the logistics plan and the sharing are optimized simultaneously. Constraints on the financial flows also introduce specificities to the coordination mechanisms and these are described and discussed. Finally, the proposed coordination mechanisms are used to describe a series of research and applied projects in which collaborative logistics has been implemented.

Hvorfor samarbeide?

Mange bedrifter ser på samarbeid som en mulighet til å styrke sin egen konkurransekraft, få tilgang til nye markeder og innfri operasjonelle, samfunnsmessige og miljørelaterte krav og restriksjoner. Samtidig har hver enkelt bedrift sine egne målsettinger som danner grunnlag for bedriftens planer og beslutninger. Derfor er det viktig å finne ut hvordan de ulike forretningsenhetene vil fungere sammen, og hvilken verdi samarbeidet vil ha. Ved samarbeid om logistikk er det spesielt viktig å identifisere hvordan logistikkaktivitetene skal planlegges og gjennomføres, og hvordan gevinsten skal fordeles. I skogindustrien konkurrerer bedriftene om salg av sine produkter på markedet, men også om anskaffelse av de ulike tømmermaterialene de trenger. Logistikk knyttet til forsyning og leveranse av ferdige produkter er et viktig ledd i verdikjeden. Selv om flere skogbedrifter ofte driver sin virksomhet i samme område eller marked, er det ikke vanlig med samarbeid mellom to eller flere bedrifter. I denne artikkelen presenteres tre kasusstudier fra skogindustrien der slike samarbeid analyseres, testes og - i to av tilfellene - iverksettes. En vanlig tilnærming har vært å bruke vanlige, driftsbaserte forskningsmodeller og metoder, deriblant spillteori. Resultatet viser at samarbeid kan gi store fordeler, men det er stor variasjon i erfaring og bruk av resultatene. Prosessen har også vist at vi mangler metodikk som dekker reelle behov i bransjen - derfor presenterer vi her en enkel metodikk som kan danne utgangspunkt for et samarbeid

A framework for an efficient implementation of logistics collaborations

In order to beat the competition, access new markets, and respect operational, social, and environmental constraints, enterprises establish collaborations with many other business entities. Furthermore, with costs and information sharing, organizations have the opportunity to optimize their logistics activities. However, each enterprise has its own objectives and typically makes its own planning decisions to meet these objectives. Therefore, it becomes crucial to determine how business entities will work together as well as the value of the collaboration. Specifically, it is necessary to identify how logistics activities will be planned and executed, who will take the leadership of the collaboration, and how benefits will be shared. In this article, we explain how to efficiently build and manage inter-firm relationships. Moreover, we propose five coordination mechanisms that contribute to ensure information sharing, the coordination of logistics activities, and the sharing of benefits. Case studies are used to demonstrate the utility of the framework

Issues and experiences in logistics collaboration

Collaborative logistics is becoming more important in today’s industry. This is driven by increased environmental concerns, improved efficiency through collaborative planning supporting resources sharing and new business models implementation. This paper explores collaborative logistics and reports on business applications within the forest products industry in Sweden and Canada. It first describes current opportunities in collaborative planning. It then discusses issues related to building the coalition as well as sharing resources and benefits. Three business cases are described and used to support the discussion around these main issues. Finally, different challenges are detailed, opening new paths for researchers in the field.

The Estrogen Effects on Endothelial Repair and Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Activation Are Abolished in Endothelial Nitric-Oxide (NO) Synthase Knockout Mice, but Not by NO Synthase Inhibition by N-Nitro-l-arginine Methyl Ester

We have previously shown that estrogen exerts a vasoprotective effect by accelerating reendothelialization after perivascular artery injury through activation of the estrogen receptor α. Because 17β-estradiol (E2) is known to increase the bioavailability of nitric oxide, in this study, we used the same perivascular model to characterize the role of the endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) pathway in reendothelialization. Surprisingly, we found that the stimulatory effect of E2 on reendothelialization was not altered following pharmacological inhibition of nitric-oxide synthase enzymatic activity by N-nitro-l-arginine methyl ester, whereas it was abolished in eNOS-deficient (eNOS−/−) mice. This discrepancy between eNOS gene inactivation and the pharmacological inhibition of eNOS was confirmed in a classical model of endovascular injury. When assessing the involvement of eNOS in short-term membrane-associated signaling events induced by E2, we found that E2 stimulated phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 in isolated perfused carotid arteries from wild-type mice in the absence or presence of N-nitro-l-arginine methyl ester, whereas this stimulation was abolished in carotid arteries from eNOS−/− mice. Similar results were obtained in primary cultures of mouse aortic endothelial cells. These data reveal an original and unexpected role of eNOS, in which its presence but not its enzymatic activity appears to be a determinant for estrogen signaling in the endothelium. The consequences of this novel function of eNOS with respect to vascular diseases should be explored